Stephen Frears has emerged as the leading contender for the upcoming Freddie Mercury biopic.

The High Fidelity director has reportedly emerged as the frontrunner to helm the project starring Sacha Baron Cohen as the Queen frontman.

The project is currently untitled, with sources close to production telling Variety that Frears is the number one choice, though other directors have been named on the desired list.

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The film will focus on Queen's career at the height of their fame in the 1970s and 1980s, and will not highlight Mercury's death in 1991.

Producers have reportedly been granted the rights to include Queen's hits in the film, which is the first time the surviving members of Queen have allowed the use of their tracks for a movie about them.